Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1887-11-25
TED'S BASKET.
CHANCE THAT BROUGHT MIss HoUeAT
TO HIS RESCUE.
His Ma and Naughty Pa-what You NAY
See Round the Corner"
Incrald.l

Miss Nougat--such tricky little parcel
OF frivolous feers aud finicky flouis TO
weary her hoyden heart over Ted's
troublss. Nothing but q caprice, per
haps but marry come up, what a Jolly
conceit it was for poor Ted and his ma
You see, things looked very blue for
Ted's Thanksgiving For some reason
or other everything bad been going
wrong lately, and he had so set his heart
on he and his ma having.a downright
merry day Of it. Ted didn't think much
OF his va in the matter, because for a
long time there had been nascent no.
ton in Ted's mind that his pa wasn't
much good Ted knew very we'll thnt
he was of precious little use in the
struggle which barely sufhced to keep
himself and his ma out OF the poor
= house, and when he looked about him
and saw other boys pas working like
majors TO make Thanksgiving Day in
their homes something like it should be,
why, he couldn't help Int think that he
and his ma would have been just as we'll
off il the elder Nmmins had never been
born.
Ted foresaw several days ago that he
and his ma were going to have the
dreariest sort of Thanksgiving Ne
saw clearly that nothing less than mar
vellous good luck would save them from
that He had done his level best to get
the means for at least one days respite
from their monotonOus misery, but IL
was no go. 1t seemed as il people had
suddenly given up buying newspapers,
and as for eIrands-why, he hadn't
struck but one in a week, and then he
only got ten cents for carrying a fat
mans satchel half way across Manhattan
island.
TED PIScHED HIS FINGERS.
And to think that everything should
have come around all right, just be-
cause he got his fingers pincbed in Miss
NouCat's brougham door, that's what
puzzled Ted tie rubbed his eyes two
or three times while he was telling his ma
of il TO make quite sure that he wasn't
dreaming. He was standing in front of
great jewelry shop up in Union Square
crying bis papers for sale in u voice TINT
was half screech and half a sob, and
trying to look as pleasant as any boy can
with chattcring teeth, shivering knees,
anu kuuChltS Itu VIII tOlNl. n udtt1
coach and pair drew up in front OF the
place and Ted stood gazlngi in awed admi
ration at the majestic creature seated on
the box. who alternately smoothed his
chevrette gloves and toycd with his Gal
ways. Ted noticed the fellow suddenly
fix himself in pose of absolute rest.
At the same instant he saw yOnng
woman coming from the jewelry shop
and approach the brOugbam. The coach
man bent his head to get word or two
of instruction and the door went to with
a slam. Flick went the whip, the horses
started, and then were pulled up short.
Ted saw that the door hadn't closed com
pletely, and, possibly with the prospect
of tip, he ran TO bang IT shut.
And that is what brought him and his
ma their Thanksgiving dinner.
TED's LUCKY "oUcHi"
Miss NOugat was in monstrOus hurry
she said SO atterwsrd-but there was |
something so agonizing in poor Ted's /
"ouch when the bTougham door .
closed on his numhed fingers that she
didn't feel like driving away with a sim
pie word of consolation. So, when Ted's
UdDu WIS ItlttNCli UlNl q NlOMt W
gather about the cOach-MIss NOugat
remarked, too, that she supposed a crowd
would gather around man who happened
TO take it into his head to saw wood on
Broadway-she decided that the quick
est way to avoid a scene WAS to tell Ted /
to Jump in and then order the driver to |
go home.
OF course Ted did as he was told
he was too much surprised to do any
thing else-and after ne had blown his
wounded fingers into something like in
sensibility. he settled himself back to
eniov the Injuries of his extraordinary
surroundings.
"Well. what would ma say ?" he
finally exclaimed, completely overcome
by the marvellous fortune that sent him /
whirling up Madison avenue behind +
pair of ponderous cOhs. and then, almost 4
before he knew what he was doing, he /
was telling Miss Nougat all about his /
ma. He told her how she worked
morning, noon, and night to earn
enough to support him and his
pa. He described how she had
almost blinded herself over the fine EN-
broideries and needlework with which
she occupied herself; how she worried
and fretted because she couldn't send
Ted to school, and how she made him
keep himself neat and tidy "to keep up
'pearances, Tied explained, "because We
used TO be well off. Not like this, you
know" he went on volubly, throwing a
comprehensive glance around the rum
bling cab, "but just well of, with a
house aud plenty to eat, and gas, an
furnace, and hired girl, and a-a-
chicken-cOop," he concluded, with the
air of having hit upon a climax that was
clincher.
COME DOWN IN THE WORLD.
"And haven't you any of those things
now?" Miss Nougat asked. "No fur
mace, or hired girl, or-or-chicken-
COOP"
my eyes, nom we're dreadful poor
now. me and my ma and pa says he
can't work, because he's gentleman,
and, / say, you know he wouldn't let me
90 around to-day to a place where they
were giving away turkeys, because, he
says, so he did, that We must be respect
able il we are poor.
"Oh, he did, did he ?" Ted's compan-
ion interrupted sharply. {" Well, we'll
attend to him, won't We though ~ and
Ted answered "Yes'm," though he
hadn't any idea what form Miss Nougat's
attention 10 his pa would assume.
They drove on in silence for some
minutes, and by the time the carriage
stopped in front of broad stopped
house up on the avenue Ted was tho
roughly lost in wonder as to what was to
be done with him. His marvel deepen
ed when he saw his companion leave the
carriage with kind "good-by," telling
him to stay where he was for little
while.
Ted waited go long that he began TO
think they had forgotten all about him
sitting there alone in that blue-cushion-
ed bandbox. Then he saw fellow who
looked like the twin brother Of the
coachman bring great basket so heavy
n. a L